Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress are as ideologically consistent and distinct as they

Generally speaking, anyone who lives in the United States of America knows that there are two main political parties—the Republicans and the Democrats. Having two main parties has its advantages and, of course, its disadvantages. For example, in By the People James E. Monroe and Rogan Kersh (301) point out having this type of system creates “predictability and stability.” However, they also declare (301) it can “lead to a gridlock.” This is not a new concept either as there has been a divide since the beginning of both parties. The two parties more often than not disagree on various issues, while rarely agreeing on what is best for the country.

The United States has maintained its two party system for some time, but the major parties have not always been so clearly separated. In the early and mid-twentieth century, polarization was actually declining, as there was much ideological overlap between the members of the two parties (Kuo). Many people, such as conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans, rested in the ideological middle. Additionally, each party represented a coalition of diverse interests. At

Concluding, This following essay has explained the key differences and key similarities that Democrats and Republicans have. The only question that still stands is will Democrats and Republicans ever be able to agree to disagree? Will the country always be divided between Democrats and Republicans? Will American citizens always have to pick a side? Will Democrats or Republicans ever be able to unite? These questions will be answered as politics and our government continues to grow and progress. Democrats and Republicans are more different and similar than anyone may

Polarization in Congress is growing uncontrollably. Congress will not agree on anything because officials are so far on the political spectrum. The spectrum is a number line that shows how liberal or conservative someone is (negative is

In order to understand the concept of political polarization one must first understand the meaning of ideology. Ideology is defined as “a manner or…content of thinking characteristic of an individual, group, or culture.”(Merriam-Webster) Voting based on ones ideology is considered a rather recent phenomenon. Prior to the rise of ideological based voting, candidates were selected and scrutinized based on their own personal attributes and characteristics rather than their ideas. Prior to the 1970’s, there was not a huge difference in ideology between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. For example, take for instance the House and Senate votes on the passage of the Social Security Act in 1935. In this vote both Democrats and Republicans were widely in support of its passage. (SSA) This is in stark contrast to today when neither party can agree on the future of Social Security. Another example would be the passage of the landmark Voting Rights Act

Republicans and Democrats are basically polar opposites when it comes to political views. Republicans have more conservative views, and Democrats have more liberal views. Whether its tax policy, health care, or social issues, they are going to have opposing opinions on the topic. This is a major reason why gridlocks occur in Congress. If they can’t come to an agreement, a gridlock is going to take place.

Several reasons are behind the increased partisanship. The first reason is the natural demographic and attitudinal uniformity arising in districts. Certain demographics are concentrated in particular areas resulting in increased polarization of those elected to Congress. Such have translated to increased party homogeneity with leaders of each divide tending to be more extreme (Soliman 109). Another reason behind the current polarization is the controversial nature of the recent presidents.

The changes between the parties have become more distinctive throughout the years. Some of these changes include preferences, behavior, increasing homogeneous districts, and increasing alignment between ideology and partisanship among voters.

Amidst the past eight years of lackluster economic advancement, America’s prowess and respect declining worldwide, increasing government involvement in daily lives, and a President seemingly unwilling to take a solid stance on a the global threat of terrorism, the transfer of power between political parties in the White House is not so stunning. Due to the two-party system, this is not an unprecedented phenomenon. The American people are constantly seeking a political party to garner their attention and adapt to changing times, opinions, demographics, and attitudes (Cohen) and this results in the alternation of power between the two key political parties.

There is less compromise when there is a profound amount of polarization happening in Congress. This creates Congressional gridlock, which is when Congress gets stuck and cannot make any policy changes, and unsatisfactory policymaking. Which leaves

The polarization of the political parties is a reflection of a country, not simply a government divided, but the country’s populous in growing further apart. Alan Abramowitz indicates the polarization of the Democrats and Republicans causes them to be on opposing sides on almost all issues and Washington reflects the growing division within Americans (714). Thus the major problem with Polarization and gridlock is not the simply the inability to pass the legislation when gridlock occurs but what it does to the morale of American citizens. D.J. Flynn and Laurel Harbridge completed two surveys in order to study how partisan congress affects public opinion. A result from the study indicated most people will accept legislation in favor of the opposing party than they will gridlock (885) and while more research is needed the result of their survey is gridlock does cause a decrease in the populist confidence in Congress (Flynn, Harbridge 890). It is clear something needs to be done to improve the mindset of the American people. One of the best ways to improve the mindset of the American populace is for them to become more educated. When the country was first established, people were not privy to every action the congress was taking as it happened, and therefore the quibbles within congress were not in the forefront of people’s minds. Even Melnick illuminated the fact that the populist is now bombarded with opinions about what is happing in Washington. He indicated when the constitutional convention took place the meeting was behind closed doors miles from constituents allowing them

Many Americans are aware of the polarization that exists within them and within the government. However, people do not realize the extent of the polarization and the effect that it has on government functions. Susan Page, author of “Divided We Now Stand” explains that many Americans are aware of the increasing polarization, when a political party influences the stance of a person, and that citizens believe that polarization influence politicians more than it influence them. However, Page argues that voters are to blame as well. She uses a survey to illustrate the choices that Americans make on a certain policy. The results of the survey show that Democrats and Republicans choose the stance of their political party, regardless of their own personal opinions on the actual policy (Page). Page’s point proves that politicians are not the only ones that contribute to the government’s dysfunction, and that voters might want to re-evaluate how they process their information and their choices if they wish to see a change.

When the word partisanship comes up, our minds can think of numerous things; in this case partisanship with the help of other reasons can explain the dysfunction of the government in the area of politics. To begin, one could ask how exactly does partisanship affect politics today. Jim Douglas does an excellent job of showing how partisanship is affecting our government and why it is important to stop it. He does this in his speech, "Beyond Partisanship." "Partisan rhetoric is abundant, while solutions are scarce. The result is a Washington [or political system] that is broken"(Douglas 104). Here, Douglas tells his audience that instead of looking for compromises or achieving results in politics partisanship is allowing

Another thing that can contribute to congressional gridlock is gerrymandering. What is gerrymandering? Well gerrymandering is the process of setting electoral districts and practicing the attempts to establish a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating district boundaries to create partisan advantaged districts. This has been going on for a long time, though without the current precision in desired results. The result of this process is that most congressional and legislative districts are effectively non-competitive between the two political

Since the writing of the United States Constitution, the American government has been structured in a way that only truly allows for two parties. Of course there are numerous other smaller parties, however, the key is that these parties are smaller. The most successful way to become elected to a position in the American governmental structure is to have the backing of the Democratic or Republican Party. Over the two-hundred-year history of the United States the parties have changed names and fundamentally altered their core believes. Today, the distinction has become quite clear as the rise of polarization forces a clear, concise difference between the two parties. The Democrats must uphold the liberal ideals while the Republican Party carters to those of a conservative